Funded by a $10,000 grant from Mountain Area Workforce Development, a $5,000 grant from New Belgium Brewing Co. and $2,400 from the city Transportation Department, the project established a 6-foot-wide trail on the Town Branch Greenway surfaced with fine gravel. The trail will serve pedestrians and cyclists until its planned removal in 2020 to make way for the greenway’s permanent path.
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners heard requests by 12 fire departments on May 8 to increase fire tax rates in their districts. If all the requests are approved, the county will spend an additional $2.7 million on fire service in the upcoming fiscal year.
The primary election on May 8 produced a combination of expected and surprising victories. We talk to some of the local winners.
With the hard-fought primary now behind them, some Buncombe County candidates can breathe a sigh of relief, while for others the hard work is only beginning.
ASHEVILLE, NC
Henderson is the only WNC county that takes part in the federal government’s 287(g) program, which enlists local law enforcement personnel to help implement federal immigration law. That participation has become an issue in the race for Henderson County Sheriff.
The county Board of Commissioners unanimously passed an amendment to the county’s zoning ordinance on Tuesday that will require developers seeking to build 75 or more residential units to also submit a traffic study with their application.
Asheville Police Capt. Stony Gonce is off the force, at least in part due to his conduct during the investigation of former officer Chris Hickman’s beating of city resident Johnnie Rush.
As part of an ongoing push for transparency in the wake of allegations of fraud against former county manager Wanda Greene, the county Board of Commissioners will hear a presentation Tuesday about the state of the county’s FY 2017-18 finances.
In a move estimated to yield an additional $800,000 of annual revenue, Council unanimously decided to provide free parking at city parking decks only for vehicles that exit within one hour.
Buncombe County Democrats are picking their choice for a new sheriff in the primary election on May 8. The five Democratic candidates have differing takes on how to shape the next iteration of the office. And though they find common ground on topics from drugs to community engagement, competition is fierce as they vie for […]
If this year’s primary race for Buncombe County district attorney seems a bit familiar, that could be because it’s happened before. After then-defense attorney Todd Williams upset six-term officeholder Ron Moore in the 2014 Democratic primary (with no Republicans or Libertarians competing), Ben Scales collected nearly 8,000 signatures to get on the general election ballot […]
In preparation for the May primary, Xpress sent questions to candidates fighting for their party’s nomination for various local and national offices. Read their responses here.
“In the words of Bernie Mac, bust a move.” Asheville City Council member Keith Young summarized the sentiments of many in attendance at Council’s April 24 meeting as he encouraged interim City Manager Cathy Ball and other city staff to speed up their work on promoting data transparency for the Asheville Police Department. Council considered […]
At an April 23 meeting of his cabinet at UNC Asheville, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper brought state leadership to the Western part of the state for a special focus on the issues and perspectives of the region.
Asheville City Council will pull a doubleheader on Tuesday, April 24, as it grapples with how to address a projected deficit of $2.2 million for the budget for fiscal year 2018-19, which begins on July 1. The Council begins at 3 p.m. with a budget work session in the First Floor North Conference Room of […]
ASHEVILLE, NC
The Energy Innovation Task Force, a joint effort of the city of Asheville, Buncombe County and Duke Energy Progress, along with community stakeholders, was created to find ways to slow the growth of energy demand in Western North Carolina. Two years in, how is that going?
A 22-page report sparked an approximately two hour discussion during a Board of Commissioners meeting on April 17 about the merits of allowing a for-profit EMS system to operate in Buncombe County.
Early voting for the May 8 primary in Buncombe County begins Thursday, April 19 and will extend through Saturday, May 5. Voters in Buncombe County can cast a ballot at one of eight sites.
Starting on April 14, CIMA and other local advocacy groups received word that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were detaining people in the Asheville area.
